The New Employee: Independent Consultant

As a result of less "face time" (time in an office among project peers), employers have started amassing databases that contain the skill sets for the company's employees. The amount of detail put into these databases is stunning. In the engineering world, for example, every skill and realm of knowledge that an engineer develops while working on a project is summarized within the database. It could be a new computer language, such as C#, mastery of a new Java library or a new computer platform, or even use of some end-user application such as an accounting package. The goal is to better match employees to tasks across a large, geographically dispersed company.

Many times while running a project, the need arises for short-term assistance or consultation from a "subject-matter expert." Working inside of a company with more than 100,000 employees, for example, one can be relatively certain that there is at least one person somewhere in the organization who has the exact knowledge needed. Without a detailed database of skills, it is impossible to find the right person and as a result, the project costs more to complete. A "Google for employee skills" allows the employer to finally mine their own most precious resource. Companies historically have incorrectly identified their employees as one of their main assets; the real assets are the specific skills and the ability to find and exploit those skills.

Employees also win in this new work-management scheme. They are more likely to have a queue of work in front of them than ever before, work that is satisfying and broadens their own exposure (as a result of working on a broader range of projects). The value of being connected to "just the right person who can solve my problem" is just the sort of efficiency that comes in an Inescapable Data world.

Are we heading toward a world of independent consultants? We are all subject-matter experts in a particular area. If it is valuable for our own employer to better connect our skills to business problems, won't it also be better for a broader range of companies? Might such a cross-company skills database allow companies to run even more successfully with far fewer full-time employees? As you will see in later chapters, one theme in the Inescapable Data world is for large companies to become smaller as components of their work get "teased-out" and sourced in a broader market.